In the continuing quest for providing greater efficiency in the operation of agricultural implements, machines have been constructed to have ever increasing lateral spans relative to a tractor or other work vehicle propelling the implement over a field. When the span increases to realize greater efficiency and speed, the criteria of having uniform and level tool contact with the soil becomes quite important. Equipment with a significant lateral span typically has many different joints and is usually articulated to enable transport to and between fields. In this regard, an area of special importance to level positioning of agricultural implements is found in the tillage field. In particular, for tillage applications, the desirable outcome is a uniform physical depth of the tillage and a uniform entry of the disc blades or other ground-engaging tools into the soil.
To date, systems have been developed for monitoring and adjusting the angular inclination of an implement. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 9,609,800 (Henry), filed on Dec. 10, 2014, discloses a remote leveling system that utilizes sensor feedback from inclinometers mounted on an implement to control hydraulic actuators on the implement for adjusting the inclination of the implement. While this leveling system provides numerous advantages over conventional leveling systems, improvements and advances are still desired for further enhancing the accuracy and effectiveness of monitoring and controlling the level positioning of an implement.
Accordingly, an improved system and method for automatically leveling an agricultural implement being towed by a work vehicle that utilizes sensor feedback from a combination of sources to enhance the accuracy and/or effectiveness of the implement leveling would be welcomed in the technology.